The Bridge of Years

May Sarton’s celebrated novel of family, philosophy, and survival, set between the two great wars that cleaved Europe in two In the wake of the First World War, life for the Duchesnes goes on almost as it always has. Situated near a vegetable garden, an orchard, and rolling green pastures, their Belgian estate is one of the few that escaped dereliction in the difficult preceding years. The garden is Mélanie Duchesne’s lifeblood—a boost to her seemingly unending well of vitality. The introspective Paul finds his refuge in writing, his most deeply held ambition. But as the years pass, Paul’s books find little audience, and husband and wife focus instead on their furniture business and their growing family. The Bridge of Years follows the Duchesnes in the years leading up to World War II—their daily exploits and travails, the small moments and mundane beauties that fill their lives. When their German friend Schmidt arrives for a visit, he brings news of an impending nightmare in the East that is threatening to overturn life as they know it. With the specter of fascism looming, the rising tensions bring out the best in Paul, whose writing enjoys renewed vigor and intensity, as well as in Mélanie, whose steadfast determination might be the very thing that saves her family as war knocks at their door once again.